


Astounding X-Men, vol. 1 #002: The First Class!

by Murf1307



Series: Astounding X-Men! [2]
Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Friendship, Male-Female Friendship, Multi, Mutant Powers, Pre-Slash, Training
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-19
Updated: 2016-06-19
Packaged: 2018-07-15 22:14:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7240579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Murf1307/pseuds/Murf1307
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The newly formed team learns about themselves, each other, and their powers.  Raven worries about Angel, and there’s a new tension between Darwin and Alex that wasn’t there before.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Astounding X-Men, vol. 1 #002: The First Class!

**Author's Note:**

> So sorry this is late! Real life got in the way this week. Hope everyone waiting on this one enjoys it!

Alex swore as he tried yet again to hit the target.  His powers just didn't work that way, it felt like.   

He sighed and sat down.   

It was worse now, though, he thought, than it had been when he used his powers before the compound attack.   

It was worse, and it needed to be _better._

The next time they had to go fight Shaw, he needed, if not to be able to hit Shaw, he needed to be able to _not hit his teammates._   Darwin had barely survived his blast back at the compound — none of the other members of the team had a gift like Darwin’s, and so they’d probably just die if he hit them. 

And he couldn’t deal with that.  Couldn’t deal with the idea of being responsible for the deaths of one or more of the others. 

Sighing, he walked toward the door.  This was totally a bust, clearly. 

He wasn't expecting Darwin to slip inside just as he reached it.  "Oh, uh.  Hi." 

"Charles said you'd be here," Darwin said, smiling a little.  "Training not working out like he's hoping it does?" 

"Yeah, no."  Alex shrugged.  "It's definitely not." 

Darwin cocked his head to the side.  "What's the issue?" 

Alex shook his head.  "Can't hit the target." 

“Maybe you’re trying too hard?” Darwin suggested, moving closer to him.  “Like, you’re too worried about what’ll happen if it doesn’t hit the target — so you don’t, ‘cause that’s what you’re thinking about?" 

“…Darwin, if I miss, somebody _dies._ ”  Alex looked at him dubiously.  “Hell, _you_  almost died." 

Darwin considered that.  “But I didn’t.  I didn’t, and we’re here, and next time, we’ll be able to handle whatever it is that Shaw tries to throw at us.  We’ll be ready." 

Alex looked away, turning toward the depressingly unburnt mannequin.  “I don’t know how you can believe that." 

“Because I trust you." 

Alex inhaled, glanced over his shoulder, and tried again. 

* * *

“I’m just saying,” Raven said, quietly.  “I wish she hadn’t left."

“What, ‘cause you and Agent MacTaggert are the only girls left?" 

The two of them were draped upside down on the couch in the main living room.  Raven was cycling through appearances, doing weird color schemes in her skin and hair, and Alex was trying not to think. 

“I want to apologize to her, I think,” Raven replied.  “I didn’t think about how different our lives had been.  I think I helped push her away." 

“You can’t blame yourself for other people’s choices, Ray." 

Raven snorted.  “Why not?  You do." 

“That’s not fair, and you know it.”  Alex sighed.  “You’re not carrying a bomb in your gut." 

“Darwin’s _alive_ , Alex.  Stop thinking about what might’ve happened, because it didn’t, and live with reality.”  Raven punched his shoulder a little.  “And considering Darwin’s alive, your reality’s pretty great right now." 

“Shut _uuuup_ ,” he groaned. 

“Oh, come on." 

Alex sighed gustily.  “Promise me you won’t — tell anyone?" 

“I’ll take it to my grave,” Raven deadpanned.   

“Thanks.”  Alex didn’t know how Raven figured him out so easy, at least when it came to Darwin and this _thing_  he felt for him. 

It was…strange, and impossible.  Darwin wasn’t afraid of him, wasn’t afraid of the fire in his belly, and that made Alex feel safe, even though it shouldn’t.  Darwin touched him, skidded a hand across his arm, put an arm around his shoulders, a million little gestures that meant _I’m here_  and _you won’t hurt me._

And Alex wanted to trust that.  Alex wanted to _have_  that. 

There were a million reasons that it would go horribly wrong, reasons the world hates people like them, like all of them, in different ways. 

“Do you ever wonder what it would be like if we didn’t look normal?” Raven asked him.  “Or, I guess, if we _couldn’t?_ " 

“I don’t know.  Life would be harder.”  He’d seen — well, he’d seen some horrible things happen to people while he was on the run, and the worst of it had been done to people who looked like Darwin or Angel.  Life wasn’t easy for anyone, but Alex held no illusions that he got the worst of it. 

“Yeah,” Raven admitted.  “I just — I don’t know.  I feel like maybe, if I couldn’t look like this, it would hurt less." 

“What do you mean?" 

“I wouldn’t feel this invisible.”  She faded to her natural appearance for the first time since Alex had known her.  Blue, scaled, red hair only down to her neck and yellow eyes with no whites in them at all. 

She was _beautiful_. 

“Charles does his best, but he doesn’t…I don’t think he understands how it feels, to be told I can’t do anything because I might lose control of my face." 

Alex reached out and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.  “I wish I knew what to tell you.”  He didn’t. 

Even though something _stirred_  in him at what she was saying, about hiding, about being able to hide, about hurting because people didn’t _know_  you were different.  He knew what she meant. 

She sighed.  “I know.  I guess I just have to live with it." 

He swallowed a little.  “Doesn’t sound like a good way to live." 

“Neither does the alternative." 

He nodded, and they both stayed quiet. 

* * *

Alex wasn’t sure why Charles Xavier’s basement included a fully functional science lab, but he wasn’t going to knock something that wound up being so useful.

Hank, though, he could probably do with less of. 

They just didn’t get along — Hank wanted so bad to be _normal_ , and that was such _bullshit._

None of them were normal, had ever _been_  normal, and ever would be, so why bother pretending?  Why bother _trying_  to pretend? 

Alex didn't get it, and didn't want to, really. 

"Okay, so if you could hold your arms out to either side," Hank said, brandishing a measuring tape.   

Alex did so, only a tiny bit sullen. 

He hoped the focus plate would help.  That's the one thing he'll give when it comes to Hank and all of this bullshit: Hank’s good at this engineering stuff, given the plane still in the underground hangar at the destroyed compound. 

If anybody could make this work, it’d be Hank. 

Hank’s quick about taking the necessary measurements, something nervous and uncomfortable about the way he did it, like he’s afraid to get too close. 

Alex decided not to bug him about it, because again, why bother? 

It’d only make things more difficult in the end. 

“Okay, turn around,” Hank said, pushing gently at Alex’s arm as a signal that he could put them down.  “Just need to get your shoulders and chest at rest, rather than exerting force." 

“Uh-huh,” Alex agreed, turning around.  Hank still seemed nervous, and now Alex sort of _wanted_  to bug him.   

Not about this, though. 

“So, you and Raven, huh?” he asked, a little sly. 

Hank sounded like he’d just about choked on his own tongue.  “What — no — what exactly do you mean?" 

Alex rolled his eyes.  “She’s totally into you, man." 

Because, hey, she was keeping his secrets, he might as well do her a solid in return. 

“You’re kidding,” Hank said, looking away and fiddling with some papers on his desk.  “You’re trying to get me to make a fool of myself or something." 

"Dude, I'm not doing this for you," he insisted.  "She's into you, and you should make a move." 

Hank looked at him dubiously.  "Did she _tell_  you she was 'into' me?" 

"Not in so many words, but dude, she's been checking you out the whole time I've known the two of you."  He shrugged.  "So you should make a move before she decides to move on." 

"To you?" 

"No, dude, I'm not interested."  He rolled his eyes.  "I'm not into her like that." 

"I find that hard to believe."  Hank exhaled.  

Alex laughed, just a little, because this _was_  kind of hilarious.  "She's gorgeous, yeah, but not really my type." 

Though, she could be, if she wanted to. 

Thank _god_ she didn't want to. 

"Whatever," Hank muttered.  "You're finished, you're free to go, and I need my lab." 

Alex chuckled.  "Yeah, yeah, Bozo, I'm leavin'."  

* * *

The satellite seemed a lot bigger once you got close to it.  Alex wasn't quite sure why they all needed to be up here -- moral support, probably -- and wasn't sure this platform was structurally sound enough for the seven people currently standing on it.

"I can't," Sean said, looking down at the ground.  "I'm gonna fall and die." 

"No you won't," Charles reassured him.  "Come now, just take a deep breath -- " 

And then Erik shoved Sean off the satellite. 

Alex raised an eyebrow at the man, but Sean was screaming and flying, which was the point of the exercise, so he wasn't sure just how much he could judge the decision. 

"Erik!" Charles snapped.  "I was working him up to it!" 

"We don't know if we have that much _time_ , Charles."  He looked back at Charles, all challenge in his eyes.  "I have to teach Raven to fight hand to hand, Hank is still putting together that plate because Alex's aim is God-awful -- honestly, Darwin is the only one here is remotely ready to take on Shaw's henchmen.  We don't have _time_  not to push." 

Charles sighed.  "Erik.  Can we have this talk _away_  from the children, please?" 

"I'm twenty-two," Hank pointed out, awkwardly. 

"I'm twenty five!"  Raven looked almost furious at being lumped in as a child. 

Alex couldn't quite bite back the laugh, and everyone's glares snapped toward him. 

"Hey, I'm seventeen, but I spent like a year in 'grownup' prison, so I don't know where you wanna classify me." 

That made _Darwin_  laugh, and so the group's anger kind of sputtered out. 

"Point," Charles said, flagging a little.  "Nevertheless, Erik, can we speak privately?" 

"Of course, Charles," Erik said, voice almost dripping in sarcasm. 

The two of them started down the satellite ladder, leaving Alex, Hank, Darwin, and Raven just sort of looking at each other. 

"Somebody should go check on Sean, right?" Raven asked. 

"I can go do that," Hank said, and immediately started down the ladder.   

Raven rolled her eyes a little.  "I'll go make sure Moira knows 'Mom' and 'Dad' are fighting again," she said, and followed, leaving Alex and Darwin alone atop the satellite. 

Alex, instead of leaving, sat down, the metal grating of the platform digging into his thighs as he tossed his legs over the edge of the platform.  Darwin sat down beside him, and the both of them looked out over the world around them. 

They didn't say anything, but then, they rarely had to. 

* * *

The focus plate helped.

Alex inhaled, and carefully, focused.  "You ready, Darwin?" 

"Uh-huh," Darwin said, in the middle of the far end of the bunker.  "C'mon, hotshot, I can take it." 

Alex nodded, and let out the blast, even as fear settled into his gut.  The blast arced, and he had to brace himself against the recoil.  It was different than just using his powers, and he stared as the blast cleared, fire all over the end of the bunker. 

And in the middle of it all, Darwin was grinning.  On fire, but grinning. 

"Hell yeah," Darwin said, and walked toward him, still burning -- though, really, it wasn't _him_  who was on fire, but the casing his body had created around him.   

Alex couldn't help but grin right back at him.  "Yeah, yeah, I know." 

"Told you you could do it."  Darwin started shedding the burning casing.  "And look, no harm, no foul." 

"Yeah, you're -- you're fine."  It was starting to hit him, then, that Darwin was fine, that it wasn't just his powers that had nearly killed him that night, months ago now -- his _birthday_. 

Now it was October, and Darwin was here, shedding like a snake and grinning like the cat who got the canary. 

Alex wasn't thinking, he just threw himself at him.   

They both tumbled to the ground, Alex on Darwin's chest and Darwin laughing. 

"Yeah, hotshot, I'm fine."  Darwin's hand settled on the small of his back.  "What about you?" 

Alex grinned at him.  "I'm _great._ " 

And the two of them laughed, and laughed, and laughed. 

* * *

 

_Our goal is not the victory of might, but the vindication of right; not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere, and, we hope, around the world. God willing, that goal will be achieved._

_Thank you and good night._

\-- John F. Kennedy, Cuban Missile Crisis Address to the Nation

* * *

 

In the morning, no one was laughing. 


End file.
